Are you part of the NICU club? Do you have a child who is still struggling with the effects of being born too soon from preeclampsia? Share your concerns and stories here among parents who have been there.

First, I am so grateful for this website. My daugh. gave birth (31 wk)4/22/04. She is still in hosp...severe Pre-e (maybe borderline HELLP),
bld pressure extremes now. Just when the hosp. got smart and brought in a Specialist for uncontrollable bld. pressure, our baby,Lucas, tonight develops distended tummy and gives up 1 1/4 cc bile. X-ray was taken (ok) , bld test...white cells good, 1 more bld test to come back. Lucas was born 3.7 lbs. , lost wt. and now back to 3.7 lbs. He's gone from 3cc formula to 15 cc breast milk through a tube.I worry because My daugh pumped when on Magnesium and nurses said it was ok..also pumped when on hi bld meds. and Zoloft for panic attacks.Could these meds have hurt Lucas? Does anyone have an idea of what his symptoms could indicate or any other info about breast milk w/ mother on these meds? Thanks, Marlene

My baby was 3.6. As soon as the mag was out of HERsystem she began eating.
She too lost a few ounces, but quickly recovered them.
The mag left in my system was ok w/ regard to breast milk.
She started on 7cc's per every three hour feed(gavage).
I am also on Paxil( a relative of Zoloft), and was during the entire course of both pregnancies and post partum w/ my preemie.
I see a high risk specialist, who feels that the Paxil is safe for me.(My gp was not to happy about my taking it while preg. but my husband and I decided to follow the OB during this portion of my care.)
I think the breast milk is easier for them to digest if it is possible to give it to them.

I pumped and bottle fed for the following 10 weeks.
(she was never a great latcher)

Bella is now doing great!(16 months and 19 pounds!)
Hang in there. I hope this info is helpful.

I'm sorry to have to welcome you to our "club", but welcome nonetheless! [:)]

I'm pretty sure that mag is safe for babies, or else most of us here would have had a lot more problems with our little ones. I was on it for 6 days before delivering, and then pumped for 24 hours while I was still on it, so my colostrum was probably full of it. I don't think that it can harm the babies, but it will make them pretty lethargic, just like it does to us. [xx(]

As for the Zoloft, I am also pretty sure (obviously non-medical advice here..."pretty sure"? [;)]) that it is safe to take in pregnancy and while breastfeeding, so I am doubtful that it contributed to little Lucas's condition. But I would take this with a grain of salt and ask the doctors anyway, just to be sure.

Once again, welcome! Please don't hesitate to ask any questions or just pop in if you need to talk. Here's hoping for a speedy recovery for your daughter and Lucas. How is your daughter doing, pressures any better?

My daughter had the distended tummy, etc. and it ended up to be a NEC scare. Please ask the nurses about NEC in the NICU if it has not already been brought up. Caitlyn had to go on 10 days of no feedings, and a HUGE round of antibiotics and a blood transfusion. Luckily no surgery was involved but she was a sick little baby for a while. I hope this is not the case with this little one. My thoughts and prayers are with you and your daughter. Note, I am not a nurse or doctor. Just a mommy.

Shannon Mommy to Caitlyn Elizabeth 30 weeks, 3 days born (8/26/2003) early due to PE, IUGR, HELLP syndrome, premature rupture of membranes

Let us know what happens. Your post made me think of how bad Caitlyn felt and how worried my husband and I were during the whole time. I don't know if it could be this, but I want you to know what happened with Caitlyn. She was in the transitional nursey at the time, (the one before going home) and was immediately back in the NICU when the nurse upstairs at our hospital noticed her distended tummy.

Shannon Mommy to Caitlyn Elizabeth 30 weeks, 3 days born (8/26/2003) early due to PE, IUGR, HELLP syndrome, premature rupture of membranes

My son also had a distended tummy for about the first 6 months of his life. They ran tests for Hirschsprung's disease (the bowel cannot push things out, even air). In the NICU his belly was so big that they passed his x-rays around on the L&D floor so all of the nurses could see it. I knew this because I heard a bunch of them talking about that poor baby in the NICU with the huge belly and I saw the x-rays. Initially, the only way to relieve the pressure or to make him poop was to use a suppository. HE was taken to Children's hospital in Chicago for a rectal biopsy but that came back negative. HE was on Progestimil until he was on solids, and that helped some. Eventually he grew out of it. They never could figure out what the deal was. He is now 5 and has no problems. The gastoentologist told me to stop feeding him breastmilk because they could not figure out why it was happening. His specialists at CHildrens were not happy that I stopped. Supposedly bm has a natural laxative that helps with this problem. As long as all of the baby's tests come back negative, just hold on tight and let it run its course. I hope that the problem is temporary and that it resolves itself.

You are all such wonderful, courageous women and thank you for educating this very worried mom/grandma. I read about NEC on the website offered. It is a frightening condition, but you give me inspirtion when you let me know that your babies are thriving! All I know right now about Lucas is that they are feeding him I V and have stopped the bm. His tummy is going down. My daughter, so scared about her bp which thus far still a serious problem, is overwhelmed now, so upset w/ Lucas. So, I can't ask too many questions,can't add to her worries... but she is strong, smart (but too stubborn)and I know she is asking the nurses and Neonat. questions.They've told her that she "might" be discharged tomarrow, under heavy bp watch. She is jumping out of her skin to go home. When things calm down, I'll give her the "gift" of this website. Thanks so much to you great moms and bless your thriving babies, Marlene

I am sure that your daughter will find this group to be the invaluable resource that it has been for me.

I feel for her. Not only is she dealing with what will probably be the most traumatic issue of her life(It was for me), she is post-partum, when her bod is throwing off horemones like crazy. I couldn't even look at my baby without bawling, and she was well(???)

I just wanted to jump in and say that my last baby was born at 31 weeks and was 3.7lbs

As for the extended belly. My Mom is an NICU nurse and the whole time my kids were in the NICU she warned me about not letting the nurses push the feedings too fast, meaning how much they were eating. She says that if the baby isn't ready for all that milk, it will cause thier stomach to bloat and cause NEC. It sounds like they are taking care of things though if they have stopped the BM for now. My 31 weeker took awhile to get the whole feeding thing down. I was also pumping around the clock, was on Mag for 24hrs and later on zoloft while pumping. They are all safe while nursing. Let us k now how things continue.